Ventilator for tobacco curing barn with combination top and closure



1958 w. P. HORNE 2, 6,835

VENTILATOR FOR TOBACCO CURING BARN WITH COMBINATION TOP AND CLOSUREFiled Fq b. 28, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 F2 9 8 INVENTOR;

MLLIAM P Hoe/v5,

2 3 afi-w ATTORNEYS OctI 21, 1958 w. P. HORNE VENTILATOR FOR TOBACCOCURING BARN WITH COMBINATION TOP AND CLOSURE Filed Feb. 28, 1955 2Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR NIL LIAM Pfi/ogws,

' ATTORNEYS VENTILATOR FOR TOBACCO CURING BARN WITH COMBINATION TOP ANDCLOSURE William P. Horne, Charlotte, N. C., assignor to Bright- 8 leafIndustries, Incorporated, Charlotte, N. C., a corporation of NorthCarolina Application February 28, 1955, Serial No. 491,044

3 Claims. (Cl. 98-42) This invention relates to means for ventilatingthe uppermost part of a drying house such as a tobacco barn and wherebythe ventilator means can be controlled by an outside operator standingon the ground.

It is an object therefore of this invention to provide a drying house,such as a tobacco barn, with an opening disposed along the highermostportion of the roof and with a movable closure for said opening wherebythe closure can be moved to open or closed or intermediate position bythe outside operator to therefore control the flow of air through thebarn.

It is another object of this invention to provide a seltcontainedventilator unit which may be fitted over an opening in the roof of abuilding, said ventilator having side walls and end walls and anelongated flat cover which is movable relative to the upper edges of theside walls and end walls to vary the opening therebetween.

Some of the objects of the invention having been stated, other objectswill appear as the description proceeds, when taken in connection withthe accompanying drawings, in which-- Figure 1 is an isometric view of adrying house such as a tobacco barn equipped with my device;

Figure 2 is an end view looking at the lefthand side of the upperportion of Figure l and showing the ventilator in closed position;

Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 1 but showing the ventilator infully opened position;

Figure 4 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view taken along thetopmost portion of the roof and showing the ventilator in closedposition and taken along the line 4-4 in Figure 2;

Figure 5 is a view similar to Figure 4 but showing the ventilator inopen position;

Figure 6 is a plan view looking downward on a portion of Figure 4 andshowing the ventilator in closed position with the topmost portion ofthe ventilator re moved and taken along the line 6-6 in Figure 5;

Figure 7 is a vertical sectional view, taken along line 77 in Figure 5and showing the ventilator in fully opened position.

Referring more specifically to the drawings, the numeral 10 indicatesthe end of a building while 11 indicates the sides. At least one of thesides is provided with an opening 12, to which a door 14 is pivotallysecured. The barn is made of suitable framework (not shown) and hasrafters indicated at 15. These rafters are joined to a ridge pole 16 andthe rafters are covered except at their apex with coverings 17 and 18leaving an uncovered opening 20 between the proximate edges of the roofsheeting 17 and 13.

The improved ventilator of this invention is broadly designated at 21and is a self-contained unit adapted to fit over the opening 20 in thebuilding roof and eliminates the need for trap doors or other closuremembers immediately adjacent the roof opening. The ventilator 21 ispreferably formed from sheet metal into a housing which preferablydefines an elongated rectangle having vertical 'ice side walls 22 and 23and end walls 24 and 25 .with flanges 27 extending from the side wallsand overlying the adjacent roof portions. 1. i

The rectangle formed by the walls 22-25 is open at the top and bottomand a movable closure member is provided in the form of an elongatedflat member 28 which may be raised to permit unobstructed air flowbetween its lower surface and the upper edges of the walls 2225 andwhich may be lowered to engage the upper edges of such walls to closethe ventilator.

The fiat cover 28 is supported and pivoted by means of at least twolinks 29 pivotally connected to the side walls 22 and 23. Each of saidlinks is generally V-shaped and the free ends thereof are bent outwardlyand are pivotally mounted in suitable openings in the side walls 22 and23. The closed or end portions of the links 29 are pivotally secured tothe under surface of the cover 28 as by cuif member 30. Suitable stopssuch as angle members 31 limit movement of the links 29 to prevent thelinks from moving to or beyond full vertical position.

The cover is moved by means of a cable 32 secured to one end thereofwhich passes through a cable guide 33 fixed on one end of the buildingand penetrating any portion of the roof which may overhang the end ofthe building. The cable 32 extends downwardly and has a handle 34 on itslower end which i provided with a plurality of spaced holes 35 adaptedto fit over a projection such as a screw 36 in the building wall foradjustably securing the handle 34 to maintain the cover 28 in de' siredadjusted position.

Thus, an operator on the outside of the building may raise the coverpartially or fully and hold it in any desired position by positioningthe handle 34 with any desired opening over the projection 36. Upon thehandle being released, the weight of the cover will cause it to close bygravity.

The cover acts as a combination top for the ventilator and closuretherefor and permits one on the outside of the building to observewhether the ventilator is open or closed and to observe the amount ofopening.

In the drawings and specification there has been set forth a preferredembodiment of the invention and although specific terms are employed,they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only, and not forpurposes of limitation, the scope of the invention being defined in theclaims.

I claim:

1. A ventilator for drying houses such as tobacco barns which dryinghouse has a longitudinally extending opening in the apex of the roofthereof, said ventilator comprising a unitary elongated housing adaptedto be superimposed over said opening, said housing having interconnectedvertically disposed end walls and side walls, said vertical side wallseach having a longitudinally extending downwardly and outwardly inclinedflange depending from their lowermost edges, said flanges being adaptedto conform to the slope of the roof portions which they overlie, saidhousing being open at its top and bottom, a closure member for the topof the housing, said closure member being of sufiiciently greaterdimensions than the housing to be seated on the upper edges of thehousing and to extend beyond the end walls of the housing when in closedposition, means disposed above the lower edge of the housing forpivotallyinterconnecting the closure member to the housing for generallyvertical movement of the closure member relative to the housing, andactuating means extending from the closure member for moving the closuremember into and out of engagement with the housing.

2. Structure according to claim 1 wherein said means for pivotallyinterconnecting the closure member with the house comprise a pluralityof U-shaped links con- 3 4 nected at their web portions to the closuremember, the References Cited in the file of this patent free ends of theU-shaped linl s being t urneq outwarcily UNITED STATES PATENTS andournalled 1n correspondlng opemngs 1n the side walls of the housing722,539 RllShtOIl Mar. 10, 1903 3. A structure according to claim 2wherein stop means 5 2207671 Kmg July 1940 extend from the housing tolimit the links against move- 2,410'950 Knutsony 1946 ment to deadcenter. FOREIGN PATENTS 36,310 Germany July 30, 1886 10 15,832 GreatBritain Mar. 8, 1905 441,196 Great Britain Jan. 13, 1936

